Coddiwomple

 

I ran across this word the other day and just loved how it sounded when it rolled off my tongue.  "Coddiwomple".   Try saying that five times real quick and see if you're aren't crazy about it too:  "Coddiwomple" "Coddiwomple" "Coddiwomple" "Coddiwomple" "Coddiwomple".   See what I mean!???

But even better than the cool word was the definition: 

"To travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination."

It reminded me of when Chuck and I traveled in the RV during the summers to get away from the brutal Texas heat.   The first year or so, the ever-planning Liz would have each destination planned, each RV park reserved and each route Google-Earthed. Truly, I was a maniac with the planning process.  But we discovered DURING the journey that we often didn't like the route we (Liz) had planned, or the RV park wasn't a good "fit" for us and Google Earth took the "fun" out of not knowing what was around the next bend.

We discovered we had a much better and happier time (and argued less!!) when we would sit at the RV dining table, pull out our trusty laminated truck stop map, close our eyes, drop our finger on a never-before-heard-of destination and then go there.  Our trip-planning never would have included Vernal, Utah, Spearfish, SD or Vacaville, CA had we not trusted our trusty blind finger.

I tell you this because our lives are so much like those fly-off-the-seat-of-your-pants RV trips.  We can plan every detail of our daily lives only to discover we don't care for the route its taking....or the place we're in....or the un-spontaneousness (is that even a word??) of our day-to-day grind.

I think of my friend Jay who walked across America last year...yep, from CA to the East Coast.  Took him five months and many pairs of shoes...but he rediscovered himself on that often difficult and unpredictable road.  He never knew each day what was waiting for him right around the next corner.  Was he going to be beat on by a hot summer sun or see a beautiful rainbow in a field of wildflowers?  Would he meet people who honked at him to get off the road or a new friend who wanted to give him a ride to the next town and buy him a meal?  

Its the same with our life here on earth....we have no idea what is down the road for next week or even the next hour.  But what we do know is we aren’t walking it alone.  God is walking beside us each step of the way, like a cheerleader cheering us on as we run this unpredictable race through earth striving for our forever Home.  But sometimes...we have to get off the safe and secure road to see the beauty in the journey.

"Don't Be Afraid That Your Life Will End.

Be Afraid That It Will Never Begin."